This invention relates to a combination beach blanket and wind or sun screen apparatus and more particularly to such apparatus which is easy to transport and deploy.
The use of beach blankets for lying on the beach and elsewhere present typical problems which are familar to all. Hence, the blankets must be properly secured, and therefore, users place heavy objects such as shoes etc. at the corners. In any event, the blankets during typical use roll up and difficulty is incurred in maintaining a desirable orientation. Apart from such considerations, weather conditions such as wind, sun position and so on typically present problems to beach goers. Under windy conditions sand is blown over the user and the blanket and protection from the sun during the course of a day might also present problems. Hence many supplemental devices such as umbrellas, canopies and so on are also employed at the beach in consideration of said problems.
The prior art is fully aware of the conditions and various patents have issued which attempt to mitigate such problems and other problems as well.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,827,477 entitled REPOSING MAT WITH FOLDABLE SUN BLIND issued on Oct. 13, 1931 to J. Kotausek. This patent describes a combination mat with an integral foldable sun blind. The unit contains adjustable frames so one can adjust the integral blind in regard to the orientation of the sun or wind.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,264,471 entitled BEACH BLANKET issued on Dec. 2, 1941 to C. R. Glenn. This patent shows a combination beach blanket which includes pockets or compartments to hold various items and includes a waterproof base layer which is snapped together by means of snap fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,898,609 entitled BEACH PACK issued on Aug. 11, 1959 to J. Storie. This patent shows a beach pack which can be unfolded into a blanket which also contains pockets for the storage of pillows or other items. The blanket has grommet holes through which pegs are inserted to secure the blanket in place. Other patents as U.S. Pat. No. 2,190,566 entitled BEACH ACCESSORY by C. E. Talian issued on Feb. 1, 1940, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,100,633 entitled COMBINATION SUN SCREEN AND PILLOW by J. L. Pintos issued on July 18, 1978 show other apparatus for use at the beach employing adjustable sun screens and similar apparatus.
As one can ascertain these devices are relatively complicated and are difficult to use as well as expensive to make. The devices have certain disadvantages as not considering a host of problems attendent with the environment at the beach.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a combination beach blanket and screen assembly which functions as an assembly to provide the dual purposes of firmly securing a blanket while providing a shield against wind and sun having the capability of storing articles as well.